Bezos accuses Enquirer of blackmail over photos
AFP, Washington
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos on Thursday accused the publisher of the National Enquirer of blackmail after it threatened to publish intimate photographs sent by the billionaire to his mistress if he did not cease his investigation into how the newspaper got the pictures.
It comes after the tabloid, having accessed private text messages, last month reported Bezos had an extramarital affair with former news anchor and entertainment reporter Lauren Sanchez a leak that led to his divorce. In a post on blogging platform Medium Thursday, Bezos said Enquirer publisher American Media Inc (AMI), led by David Pecker, approached him with a threat to publish the photos if he did not halt an investigation into the motives behind the leak.
He added the publication demanded he and security consultant Gavin de Becker, who is leading the probe, publically state they had no knowledge or basis for suggesting that AMIs coverage was politically motivated or influenced by political forces.
